Green Choices Wednesday - Recycle your Shoes!

Recycle your shoes!

As an environmentalist, I try to minimize my unnecessary consumption of resources and minimize my contribution  to excess waste disposal.  As a runner, I'm concerned that my consumption of shoes is higher than the average person.  It's recommended that runners replace running shoes after 300 to 500 miles.  I've been sucessful in getting as much as 500 miles out of most of mine.  After that many miles, the shoes' shock-absorbing properties are compromised slightly from repeated compressions of the soles.  A runner risks injury by extending shoe use too far.  When I retire a pair of shoes from running, they are still normally in great general condition and have little sole wear.  500 miles sounds like a lot, but worn just for running, for example at 9.5 minutes per mile, they've only been worn about 80 hours.  That's like wearing them at work for two weeks, except that it is more extreme service! I do extend shoe use by wearing my running-retired best condition shoes additionally for casual use, and recently a friend reminded me about the Soles4soles organization.

Soles4soles (http://www.soles4souls.org/) is a non-profit organization that was formed after the asian tsunami several years ago.  They recycle "gently used" shoes by cleaning them and giving them to needy shoeless people around the world.  I've seen shoe collection bins at race events in the past, and recently explored their website.  I found that it's really easy to donate shoes at any time, benefitting both the Earth and people who need shoes.  Using the location finder at http://www.soles4souls.org/about/locations.html, I found that there are two locations within a mile and a half of my home where I can donate used shoes!

In the future, I'll take shoes to these locations as I retire them, rather than wait to donate them at a race event.

Recovery Run/Eco-Run and Cool New Gadget

I ran my recovery run in the park this morning, 3.2 miles, even slower and easier than usual.  I started out a bit sore from Saturday's long run, and running hurt a bit until I warmed up completely.  I experienced a somewhat unusual sensation after yesterday's 18 miler; immediately after I finished the run, when I first stood still, I had such a burning feeling in my calves like I've never felt before.  It was like they were on fire for a minute or two, and then the sensation subsided.  It was just a little different from a normal workout burn; it's hard to describe...

A recovery run is a perfect pace to combine with an Eco-Run.  The slower pace allows a better view into the underbrush and a little more time to look.  I took advantage of the easy run to look farther beyond the edge of the trail for litter, and bagged a lot of plastic and aluminum for recyling as I passed by.  One last Eco-Run in this park before I move.

Don't you hate litter?

I also found an interesting new gadget for the blog, a moon phase indicator (see sidebar).  I sometimes look up moon phase information to get an idea of how much natural light to expect on pre-dawn runs.  This gadget will put it at my fingertips on the blog...

Eco-Running

On weekends, I run the trails through our local parks. As I run, I pick up litter along the way, bring the recyclables home and put them in a recycling bin to put out at the weekly curbside pickup, and drop the non-recyclables in the trash barrels in the park. Why?
1. Because I hate litter.
2. Because I hate the idea of recyclable items not being recycled.  Such a waste of resources!

Here's the return from my Sunday run in the park. 

I carry a reuseable bag in my pocket, but I'll fill a discarded plastic shopping bag instead, if I see one on the ground.

These were all laying along the trails in the park.  Disgusting!

Here's where this stuff belongs:  in recycling buckets!

I've been doing this for several years, and I knew that there had to be other people out there doing the same thing.  Earlier this year, I came across the Eco-Runner blog, which has since evolved into the Eco-Runner website, founded by Sam Huber in Milwaukee.  Sam has combined a passion for running with a passion for a cleaner world, and called it Eco-Running.  I'm pleased to see the spirit of volunteer environmental cleanup growing from an individual activity into a movement.  Check out these links, and...

Run Green!

The Bottled Water Scam

The sale of bottled water is a case of brilliant marketing—to convince the public to buy filtered bottled water—at a price per gallon that is higher than gasoline! The cost is great to the environment and to the consumer. 

Most plastic bottles do not get recycled.  Even if the bottles are recycled, they are the product of an energy consuming supply chain.  Bottling plants consume a lot of energy.  In addition, consider the diesel fuel consumed, and the resulting air pollution, from transporting thousands of truckloads of bottled water all over the country every day.

And the cost to the consumer—if a 16 oz. bottle of water costs $1, that’s $8 a gallon, twice as much as gasoline at its summer 2008 peak! What a scam!  It is ironic that we pay this price for water in a nation that has the cleanest and most widely available public water systems in the world.

A few statistics:

• 70 million bottles of water are consumed in the U.S. each day.
• Americans threw more than 22 billion water bottles in the trash in 2006.
• Eight out of 10 plastic water bottles become landfill waste.
• Plastic bottles take 700 years before they begin to decompose in a landfill.
• It takes over 1.5 million barrels of oil to manufacture a year’s supply of bottled water. Apply the principle of supply and demand and consider the effect of the demand for a needless 1.5 million barrels of oil on the price of our gasoline! 

Most bottled water is just filtered municipal tap water.  We can save hundreds of dollars per year (and help the environment) by buying any one of several types of filtering pitchers or systems, filtering our own tap water, and filling our own reusable water bottles. The result is water that is just as clean and good-tasting as commercially filtered water.

As a runner, in addition to water, I use sports drinks for electrolyte replacement and for energy.  I've found that a good substitute for a bottled sports drink is a powdered sports drink and a reuseable aluminum bottle.  For a 32 ounce sports drink, consider how much fuel it takes to ship a few grams of powder, versus the fuel it takes to ship the same ingredients added to 2 pounds of water!  Sugar-free powdered electrolyte mixes come in a lot of flavors, and come in very small packets that fit easily in a pocket.   I like these when I just need hydration.  When my bottle is empty, I refill at a water fountain, and add the powder.  For long endurance runs, I may want a carb boost in addition to the electrolytes, so I carry the sugar-sweetened Gatorade mix in pre-measured portions in small containers.  I find that small prescription bottles make good containers for powder.

Run Green!

Green Running

Earlier this year, I came across an interesting collection of articles on "Green Running" at Runners World.  Here's a link to the articles. I really liked the article titled "How to Be a Greener Runner," "30 things even a busy, sane person (i.e., you) can do."  Here, the environmentally-conscious runner will find "Good," "Better," and "Best" suggestions in a number of categories.  I think that the important thing to recognize is that it may not be possible for every runner to use all of  the suggestions.  However, the power of collective action is for concerned individuals to be aware and to each just do what they can; the cumulative effect makes a big difference.  Here's what I'm doing:

• I start most of my runs from my home. Of course, this may not work for runners living in busy urban areas.  I'm fortunate to have a park within running distance and fairly quiet neighborhood roads to run.  Of course, we all need a change of scenery occasionally.
• I haven't run a lot of races, but when I race, I'll target local races as much as possible. Of course, if you don't live near Boston, and your life's ambition is to run the Boston Marathon, why not go for it?  We all have to make choices every day and make trade-offs based on what's important to us. 
• I buy powdered sports drinks and mix them myself. I use a reuseable bottle for sports drinks or water.
• I pick up litter along roadways and park trails where I run, and recycle the plastic, aluminum and glass. 
• For cross-training, I bicycle from my home, use a stationary bike at home in bad weather, and work out with dumbells at home (instead of driving to a gym).
  

Run Green!